IECEx Trade Agents, Quality Assurance Reports (QAR) for IECEx

Overview

IECEx Trade Agents

An IECEx Trade agent is an organisation who places a product on the market under their own name but is not the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) of the product. The name and address of the trade agent (and not the OEM) is included on the product-marking label.

IECEx Trade Agent certificates are issued by the same Certification Body who issued the OEM’s certificate. They enable a product to be sold into different markets via different companies; an advantage if you have partnerships with companies who are already established in certain markets, or want to add to your product portfolio without the need for costly product design resources.

The Trade Agent Approach

From a certification viewpoint, issuing a Trade Agent Certificate is a relatively straightforward exercise, and additional testing is not normally necessary.

The below provides some of the typical documentation we need to see to approve a trade agent:

An application form completed by the Trade Agent, which includes the IECEx certificate number of the OEM and an alternative type designation, if required
A declaration from the original manufacturer that the products to be supplied to the Trade Agent will be the same as that already certified
A declaration from the Trade Agent that the products to be put on the market will be identical to that already certified and supplied and will not be modified in any form
A copy of the contractual agreement or memorandum of understanding between the companies
A label drawing for the Trade Agent that shows the same information as on the label of original certified product, except for the certificate number, the product reference (if different), and the Trade Agent’s name and address

Quality Assurance Report

As well as the Trade Agent’s certificate, a Quality Assurance Report (QAR) may also apply. An audit of the Trade Agent’s premises will be needed, and information about QAR can be found in the audits and inspection section of our website.

IECEx Trade Agents

Overview